Fresh off contract extension, Seth Lugo guides Royals to key victory over Braves

Jaylon Thompson, The Kansas City Star on Jul 29, 2025

Published in Baseball

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Royals ace Seth Lugo walked calmly to the mound at Kauffman Stadium in the first inning.

Not much had changed, physically. He was the same All-Star pitcher and 2024 runner-up for the American League Cy Young Award. And he still had a variety of pitches to attack the very best of opposing lineups.

The circumstances around him, however, had changed. The Royals rewarded Lugo with a two-year contract extension that ties him to the organization through 2027 with a vesting option for the 2028 campaign.

Lugo was compensated for his stellar production. Now, he’s tasked with helping the Royals make a second-half postseason surge.

On Tuesday, Lugo propelled the Royals to a 9-6 victory over the Atlanta Braves. He allowed three earned runs across 5 2/3 innings while registering five strikeouts.

Lugo cruised twice through the Braves lineup, but the third time was a little tricky. In the sixth inning, Braves stars Austin Riley and Marcell Ozuna blasted a pair of home runs to help Atlanta get back in the game.

The Royals, who raced out to an early four-run lead, held a slim advantage as the Braves scored three runs in the frame. Lugo departed with the bases loaded but was bailed out by his teammates.

KC reliever Hunter Harvey was called upon from the bullpen. He just returned from the 60-day injured list and faced Braves leadoff hitter Jurickson Profar. Harvey forced Profar to fly out as he stranded all three baserunners.

Due to Harvey’s hold, Lugo remained the pitcher of record. He later got critical run support as the Royals scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth.

New Royals acquisition Randal Grichuk sparked the late rally. He drew a walk against Braves reliever Enyel De Los Santos to load the bases. From there, Kyle Isbel hit a three-run double to fuel a five-run inning.

The Royals (53-55) held on to even the midweek series. The Braves (45-61) recorded their sixth loss in their last seven games.

Pasquantino shines at The K

Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino set the tone Tuesday against the Braves.

In the first inning, Pasquantino homered off Braves starter Erick Fedde. He hit a 91.2-mph cutter into the right-field seats as the Royals got on the board early. It was his 18th home run and moved him one shy of his career high mark set in 2024.

Pasquantino added an RBI double in the sixth. He finished 3 for 5 as the Royals collected 11 hits.

Since June 22, Pasquantino has hit safely in 22 of 30 games while recording 17 extra-base hits, 24 RBIs and 13 runs.

What’s next?

The Royals conclude their six-game homestand Wednesday afternoon against the Braves. KC has not announced a starter for the series finale. The Braves will start left-hander Joey Wentz (2-2, 5.76 ERA).